Rebel With a Cause
by Brambleeyes
Summary: A murder weapon found in a abandoned backpack has the team reinvestigating the 1991 case of a high school student who was thought to have been the only murder victim of a serial shooter
1. Chapter 1

The following story is fictional and does not depict any actual person or event

_November 16, 1991_

_("Man in the Box" by Alice in Chains)_

_Parker Westby had his back leaned against one of the off white walls, arms folded, headphones blaring away around his neck, brown eyes lazily scanning the toxic dumping ground that was the high school cafeteria._

_He saw the science geeks busily screwing away at some sort of invention, a group of girls hurriedly chatting away over an unkown important thing, the football players tossing a football across the table, drama students weaving through the crowd, kids waiting in line to recieve their food, and faculty roaming around the edges of the room._

_Turning his head slightly, he saw one of the drama students chatting to a group of bored looking guys and girls, trying as hard as she could to raise ticket sales._

_"And it really is going to be a great play" she said in a enthusiastic voice "so please by tickets, we have plenty left and in case you can't make it to tonight's performance, we have two other this week so no one misses out". All of them groaned slightly, each one wanting this girl to go away._

_"Can you just go now" barked Elise Hartshore_

_"Well, thanks for your time" she said, looking slightly defeated by this unanimous display of disapproval._

_"Hey Lydia!" Parker yelled, the girl turning her head in response, face brightening up once she saw him, immediately walking over to where he stood._

_"Hey Parker" she said, "What's up with you?"_

_He shrugged "not much" he replied, "just killing the time till next hour. I still see your trying to get people to buy those play tickets huh?"_

_"Yeah" she said "and as you just saw, it isn't exactly going well"._

_"After last years disappointment of a show" he said "doesn't seem like to big of surprise. And as for Elise, she's nothing but a skank, so whatever shit comes from her mouth is worth less than nothing__"._

_She nodded, chuckling slightly at this comment "your right" she said "only reason why most of them even showed up last year was to see Austin Richards with his shirt off"._

_"True" he said "I swear we teens today are just so motivated"._

_"But really, this years show is going to be so much better" she said "after last years debacle, we made sure that we wouldn't screw this one up. You're going to come right?"_

_"Don't I always come?" he said._

_"Two years running" she said._

_"My point is proven" he remarked._

_Matt Klein had just caught the football, his beady eyes scanning the room till he saw the science nerds working on their project. Deliberately throwing the ball off course, it went smashing into one kids lunch, splattering everyone in mashed potatoes and gravy, then it knocked right into the contraption they had been working on, sending the entire thing to the floor._

_All the players howled with laughter, while Adam Baker came running up to grab the football._

_"Aw, look Matt, you broke it" he called out, picking up the mangled piece of metal, everyone laughing in response, while none of the faculty members seemed to respond to the whole incident._

_"That ass" Parker said in a disgusted voice._

_"I take it then you heard" Lydia said._

_"You mean about the whole charge being dropped?" he responded, "yeah, I heard. All thanks to daddy over there" he was indicating to the principle of the school, who was roaming around the cafeteria as well, giving his son an encouraging look as if he approved of it all._

_"You talk to Liz yet?" she asked._

_Parker nodded his head "yeah but I haven't seen her since Tuesday. How's she doing?"_

_She sighed, "Well, as good as expected, I mean, after what she went through…"_

_"It should have never happened in the first place" he said, fist clenching as his anger steadily rose._

_He gave out a low, frustrated sigh "there's no justice left in the world" as he said this, he looked over to see Calvin Ridge shaking down some freshman for money, face turning purple from the choke hold he was being given._

_Shaking his head, Parker took his back off the wall "I better go" he said, hoisting up the backpack at his feet "got a lot of things to do over the weekend"._

_"Really?" she asked, "you've never been busy before"._

_He shrugged "shit happens" he replied, starting to walk off._

_"And you will come to the play, right?!" she asked._

_"I will!" he responded "don't worry so much"._

_"Then I'll see you tonight!" she responded, waving him by._

_Nodding in response, he raised his bag up higher; turned forward and exited threw the cafeteria doors._

* * *

_At the bottom of the schools entrance steps, Parker's dead body laid sprawled on the floor, the moonlight outside casting his body in a eerie silver glow. Bloody stab wounds dotted his chest, a long slash mark running across his throat, eyes glazed over as he stared off into nothing._

* * *

_The detective was just about finished filing away the contents of the box, the last items being four issues of the Inquire stacked next to him, each story on the front page blared the same messages._

"**Death At Local High School", "Serial Shooter Turns To Murder". "Students And Parent's Cry For Justice", "A Sign Of Things To Come?"**

_With the last one stored away, he picked up the box and set it into the empty compartment above, the front end reading_ "**Westby, P. Dec 1991**".

* * *

_Present Day_

Lily Rush parked the car near the front of the school entrance, Lieutenant Stillman already waiting for her by the front doors.

"Ah, there you are Lil" he said to her as she got out "where's Scotty?"

"Got held up with something" she responded "didn't say what, just that it was important. I asked Kat if she could come down instead".

"She gonna be here soon?" he asked.

"Yeah, said she be here in just a few" she responded "in fact…yep, that's her".

Sure enough, another car came driving up to the entrance, Detective Kat Miller stepping out of the drivers seat.

"Hey Lily," she said "boss, hope I didn't keep ya waiting".

"Not at all" he replied.

"So what gives?" she asked, walking up to them.

"Got a call from a janitor who works at the school bout an hour or so ago" Stillman began "said that he was working on a broken gas pipe in the mechanical room when he happened to come across a discarded backpack hidden behind one of the boilers".

"Students?" Lily asked as they walked through the entrance doors.

"Probably" he replied, "figured the thing had been back there for years, considering the shape he found it in. Anyway, he wanted us to come down and see if it was something of concern".

A few minutes later, the three of them were in an abandoned faculty lounge, not having to wait long till the door opened, a short dumpy man walking in, a grubby black backpack gripped in one.

"Mason?" Stillman asked.

"Yeah, that's me" he replied in a gruff voice.

"Lieutenant Stillman, Philly PD" he said "we spoke on the phone".

"Ah yeah, right" he said, "are those two…"

"Detectives Rush and Miller" he indicated to the two of them "also from Philly PD".

"Nice to meet you both" Mason said, both the women nodding in response.

"That the backpack you told me about?" Stillman asked.

"Oh, yeah, yeah this is" he said, bringing the thing over to the table "um, I didn't look inside it or anything, figured it wasn't right looking through other peoples stuff, so I thought I just leave that stuff to you guys".

"Understandable" Lily replied, sliding the thing over to her, grabbing hold of one of the zippers and opening the top. Inside, she saw an old crinkled shirt, flattened roll of film, and a couple of schoolbooks stuffed with papers, all the average stuff you'd find in a high schoolers bag.

"Yep" she said, pulling out the contents "defiantly a students".

"Anything of interest?" Stillman said.

"Not really" she replied, while Kat began to open one of the side pockets "got your shirt, books, binders, the usual".

"Found a wallet here" she said, pulling it from the side pocket.

"Any license of sort?" asked Stillman.

"Lets see" she said, flipping it open "there's a drivers permit, belonging to a…Parker Westby".

"That name sound familiar Mason?" he asked.

Biting his lip slightly, he nodded "yeah, I've heard of him, real tragic story".

"How so?" Lily asked.

"Back in 91" Mason said "that kid was found murdered at the bottom of the school entrance steps. From what I heard, he was stabbed a couple of times before the perp cut his throat open, caused a real frenzy back then".

"Why?" Kat asked.

"Because" he responded "every one knew who the killer was".

"Really?" she said "whom?"

"Do any of you remember that serial shooter?" he asked "you know, guy going around campus shooting up students for a month or so".

"Ah right" Stillman said, "Yeah, I remember that, all over the papers when it happened".

"Wait, you mean…" Lily began, foggy memories coming back to her "the Fairmount serial shooter? is that who your talking about?"

"That's the one" Mason replied.

"But how do you know if it's the same guy?" Miller asked "if all this guy did was shoot people down, why change his motive for this Westby kid?"

"I dunno" he said "maybe he was special case. but believe me, I know it was him, I just know it".

"I still find it hard to believe that this kids killer" she continued "and this Fairmount shooter are the same people".

"Guys, look at this" Stillman said, pulling out from the bottom of the backpack a 10-inch long hunting knife, dried blood smeared on its surface "I think we got our murder weapon. Least now we know why it was hidden in a mechanical room".

"All we need now is our murderer" Lily said.


	2. Chapter 2

The detectives were now gathered in the storage room, an open box situated on the table, Parker's backpack laid out near them.

"Parker Westby" Lily began "age 16. Found dead on the morning of December 22nd, reported missing just a few hours ago by his parents when he failed to come home the previous day".

"Autopsy said that he suffered a total of five stab wounds to the chest" Kat said, reading off from the report "and a slashed throat, which was ultimately ruled as the true cause of death".

"So you all think this Fairmount shooter was responsible for Parker's death?" Nick Vera asked, disbelief in his voice.

"That's what was assumed at the time" Stillman responded.

"Does anyone mind telling me who this infamous shooter was?" Kat asked.

"Think maybe Jeffries can answer that" Stillman said "he was on the case at the time".

"You were?" Lily asked, a bit surprised by this information.

"Yeah" Will Jeffries responded, "Remember the whole incident. The Fairmount shooter was the name given to the perp by the press, who at the time was going around shooting down students in and around the high school. Five victims in total, each one shot point blank to the chest at least two times. The shooter always followed a specific formula. First, he would call the station at least a few minutes before he carried out the act, telling them to get to the school as soon as possible and to bring an ambulance with them".

"So his intentions were never to kill any of his targets?" Kat asked.

"Never" Jeffries said "for each of his two shots, he made sure the bullets did not hit any major organs or blood vessels or nothing to serious as to have them bleed to death before the ambulance arrived. After the attack, he would then leave behind a message on a scrap sheet of paper, each time always saying the same thing. I Balance".

"I Balance?" Nick said "cryptic much".

"Does it mean anything?" Lily asked.

"Not that we were able to find" he responded, "We just assumed it was sort of like a calling card. The whole ordeal lasted literally in a months time, from the first attack on the 18th of November to the his supposed final act the 16th of December".

"Only a few days before Parker got killed," Stillman said.

"But still" Kat said, "it just doesn't make sense, why would the shooter change his whole mode of operation just on this one teen?"

"You have to understand" Jeffries said "at the time, people were petrified to leave their houses, parents worrying over their kids safety, the whole community was unstable at the time. So naturally, soon as this kid shows up dead everyone is able to jump to the conclusion that it was the shooter's doing, regardless of any sort of outside doubts. But even so, it didn't matter in the end, the guy who did it was never caught"

"And with no suspect to interrogate and any other hard evidence to go on…" Nick began.

"Case goes cold almost instantly" Lily finished.

"Do we know why Parker was staying so late after school hours?" Kat asked.

"According to his parents" Lily said, "he was staying after to work on some pictures he had taken, otherwise nothing else to suspicious".

"So besides that, anything else we got on this kid?" Vera asked.

"Not really" Lily responded "straight B student, didn't do any sort of sport or major school activities, no discipline referrals, just your average student".

"Hey everyone" came the voice of Scotty Valens "sorry I'm late, just got caught up in a few things".

"Everything all right?" Jeffries asked.

"Yeah" he responded "just some family stuff that's all, nothing serious. So, whaddya we got?"

"Lil, think you can fill him in on that?" Stillman asked, Lily nodding "all right, then you two can go have a talk with the parents, see if they give us any other information we don't have while Jeffries here can give us all the details on the Fairmount shooter, maybe we try to uncover anything new that was missed".

With orders given, they broke off, Lily walking over to Scotty, who seemed slightly detached from everything.

"Hey" she said "you all right? Seem kinda out of it".

"Yeah, just got some stuff on my mind" he said "nothing to worry about. So, think you can now inform me on the case?"

"Course" she replied, still not convinced he was telling her the truth.

* * *

Lily filled him in on the case during the car ride over to the Westby house, the two detectives now seated in the living room, Mrs. Westby in the opposite chair.

"What's this all about reinvestigating Parker's case?" she asked.

"A janitor at the school found his backpack in one of the mechanical rooms" Lily answered, "there was a knife inside, we think that might have been the murder weapon used".

"Oh my god" she said "I can't believe after all these years, why I thought maybe it was stolen or something".

"Mrs. Westby" Scotty said, "How much do you know about the Fairmount shooter?"

"Oh" she said in a surprised voice "now there's one topic I haven't heard of in a long time. Those were some dark times indeed, was so afraid I couldn't even step foot outside my front door. You think he was the one responsible for Parker's death?"

"do you believe that?" Lily asked.

"well" she began "I mean, at that time, I truly believed it was all the shooter's doing. All everyone talked about back then, so when Parker was killed, my first instincts pointed to the shooter and no one else".

"But now?" Scotty said.

"Now that I think about it," she said, "I do think it's unlikely that the shooter was responsible. I'm not any expert and all but now when I truly think on it, whole thing just seems odd to me. Probably the whole reason why his case was never solved. We were so keen on getting this one guy that the facts just went out the door".

"So then if the Fairmount shooter didn't do it" Lily said "who do you think killed him?"

"I'm not sure that I should be the one answering that" she responded.

"Why not?" Lily asked.

"Parker was a pretty reserved boy" she said "barely told me and his father anything that happened at school. He'd just say that his day was fine or bad or something along that line and nothing more. We tried to get something more out of him but he'd just kept to himself most of the time".

* * *

_("Enter Sandman" by Metallica)_

_"Parker!" yelled Donna Westby "come on, breakfast is ready!" she heard a shuffling sound on the stairs, Parker appearing from the steps, quickly flying past his mom to get to the fridge._

_"Whoa there" she said, "what's the rush?"_

_"Sorry mom" he replied "can't stay long, Liz is coming over soon, two of us are gonna walk to school"._

_"But school doesn't even start for another hour" his mom said "why go in so early?"_

_"Just some stuff" he said "that's all"._

_"What kind of stuff?"_

_"Its nothing mom, don't need to worry so much" he replied, pulling out a plain bagel from the fridge._

_"let the boy be sweetie" said his dad from the table, paper in hand, not even looking up from his article._

_"yeah mom" he replied "listen to dad". Bagel clamped in his mouth, he grabbed his bag and said a muffled bye as he headed for the door._

_"oh god" she said "he forget his money again" grabbing a five dollar bill off the counter, she hurried to the door, Parker hugging a pretty blonde waiting just at the foot of the concrete steps._

_"you forgot this" she said, bill held out._

_"oh yeah, right" he said "thanks mom"._

_"that's what I'm here for" she replied "hello Liz"._

_"hi Mrs. Westby" she said in a sprightly voice "you're looking nice this morning"._

_"Why thank you" she replied "least someone around here notices all the effort I go through". As she said this, a red sports car stopped near the front of the house._

_"hey Lizzie!" yelled Adam "why don't ya ditch the loser and hop on in?"_

_"in your dreams Adam" she called back "why don't you try that line on some other whore for the day"._

_"a fighter, huh?" he said "well, perhaps some other time then"._

_"yeah, maybe" she shot back. with that, he pulled up his window and took off down the road._

_"I can't believe you" Parker replied "your actually interested in that guy?"_

_"no, I ain't" she said._

_"bull shit, I saw it plastered all over your face!" he exclaimed._

_"really Liz" his mom said "you can do so much better then him"._

_"yeah, much" he said "you heard what happened to Kathleen Quinn"._

_"now just stop" she said "it never made it to court. And besides, it wouldn't be the first time she's lied about a guy". Parker rolled his eyes at this._

_"All right you two" his mom cut in "I think you should be getting off to school, after all, isn't that the whole point of this?"_

_"Thanks mom" Parker said in a mock voice "come on, we'll discuss this on our way to school"._

_"There is nothing to discuss!" she said as they opened the metal gate, Dawn looking on as the two of them walked on down the street._

* * *

"Who exactly was this Liz girl?" Scotty asked.

"Parker's best friend" Mrs. Westby said, "both of them go way back, friends ever since kindergarten, thick as thieves through and through. She was a kind girl but a foolish one at that".

"why so?" Lily asked

"she could never see past what was in front of her face" she replied in a grim voice "whole reason why the rape ever happened".

"What rape?" she said.

"Adam Baker" she said.

"The guy in the red car?" he replied.

"That's him" she said "big shot at the school, captain of the football team, principle's son, stereotypical rich boy. Anyway, she was at some party, Parker was at home, things happened and next thing I know, get a call at about four in the morning, Liz crying over the line".

"Was it ever reported?" Scotty said.

"It was" she said "but it got shot down, combination of both lack of evidence and the principle's influence. From what Parker told me, there were two others before Liz, neither of them had the courage to go through with it and report him".

"Anything else on this guy we need to know?" Lily asked.

"Yes, in fact" Dawn said "he was the first victim of the Fairmount shooter. From my stand point, seemed like a pretty just thing to do".

"You know where we might be able to find Liz?" Scotty said.

"She works as a guidance counselor at the school now" she said "does all she can for those students. I know she'd never admit it to me but, I think the real reason she's there is to make sure no one goes through what she went through".

"we appreciate all the help" Lily said, she and Scotty getting up.

"and" Mrs. Westby said "if you could, when you guys no longer need Parker's bag, is it all right if I had it back? I know it's a bit weird but…"

"don't worry" she said "we understand". Mrs. Westby smiled, Lily turning around and walking to the door.

* * *

"all right" Nick said "gotcha" he hung up the phone, swiveling his chair to face the Lieutenant.

"That was Lily and Scotty" he said "two of them just finished with the mom, said they were going to the school to talk with Parker's friend".

"Well, we finally found it" Jeffries voice rang in, he and Kat each carrying boxes "the entire case on the Fairmount shooter. Never thought I'd be opening this thing up again".

"Hey Jeffries" Nick said, getting off the chair "do you happen to remember Adam Baker?"

"He was the first victim" he replied "why?"

"Lily said something about him" Vera said, "apparently, our boy had a track record of raping fellow students".

"Heard about that" Jeffries said, "From what I remember, the only law suit filed never stuck in court".

"That's what she said" he replied.

"So maybe Parker decides to take revenge on Adam" Kat said "only he's the one who gets the tables reversed on him and winds up with the slit throat".

"Definitely worth checking into" Stillman said "so besides Adam, who are our other four victims?"

"After Baker's attack" Jeffries said, "we then got Calvin Ridge, shot outside his car the night of November twenty sixth. Matt Klein, attacked in the school's weight room December second. Elise Hartshore near the schools north wing on the thirteenth, and our final victim, Terrell Hopkins in the schools main lobby on the sixteenth. Each one coming from different social group, family status, grade point average, class year, no strong connection made between any except for Adam and Matt, both best friends at the time. But as for the rest, nothing".

"Okay then" Stillman said "I want you all to dig up any information on our five victims, grades, discipline referrals, police warrants, anything at all that might shed some light. While you're at it, see what our boy Adam has been up to after high school".

* * *

Walking down one of the halls, Liz Hartford directed one of the lingering students to head to class as the bell rang, a brief image of her teenage self flashing into view. Long wavy blonde hair, bright smile, pastel colored shirt, practically exuding sunlight from all around her. as the detectives approached, she flashed back to her older self, blonde hair now cut extremely short, whole outfit now a simple long-sleeved black outfit and jeans, whole presence a bit tougher then before but still warm and inviting.

"Liz Hartford?" Lily asked.

"yes, that's me" she replied.

"Detectives Rush, Valens" she said "we're here to talk about Parker Westby".

"ah yeah" she said "figured you'd come sooner or later. Heard about the janitor finding his backpack, whole schools been buzzing about it".

"you and Parker had been friends for a long time" Scotty said "two of you must have known each other inside and out".

"yep, pretty much" she said "though we couldn't be more opposite. I was the naïve schoolgirl whose head was always up in the clouds, he was sort of my polar opposite. Sarcastic, cynical, never one to back down from anything, he was quite the rebel, if I say so myself".

"so then when he found out what Adam Baker did to you" Lily said "must have really pissed him off, hearing some guy did that to his best friend".

Instantly, Liz's face darkened "ah" she said, hand rubbing the back of your neck "probably should have known that would come up as well".

"I know it's difficult to talk about" Lily said.

"no, no really" she said "its fine. Past is the past, what I always say. But yeah, really did push Parker over the edge. When he came to pick me up the night…it happened, never seen him so angry before. He didn't express it out loud but when I looked in his eyes, what I saw…scared me".

"must have wanted revenge" Scotty said "so maybe that night he was murdered, he was out getting revenge on Adam, only he's the one who gets himself stabbed".

"no, there's no way" Liz said "Parker would never do something like that!"

"but at the time" Lily said "sure seemed like the perfect chance for payback".

"I know he would not try to kill Adam" she said "and even so, I know for a fact that he wasn't even at the school when Parker got killed. Anyway, the shooter already made sure that Baker got his just deserts, and when that happened, lets just say there was one person who wasn't afraid of claiming it all for themself".

* * *

_(_"_Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana)_

_Liz and Parker were seated at one of the empty lunch tables. Her head was down, busy flicking away at a rubber band around her wrist, not having spoken a word in a while._

_"You sure you're all right?" Parker asked, "We can go home if you want"._

_"Its fine" she said, raising her head and giving him a smile "really, I'm okay. Besides, I don't think we could be able to get out again" she was referring to the security guards now situated at the door, busily searching one of the students entering the school._

_"Can't believe it" he said "one little attack and the whole school goes on double lock down"._

_"But when its daddies little boy" she said in a harsh voice "there's no expense taken"._

_"And it ain't like he deserved" he said "far as I can say, few more people here need to be gunned down as well"._

_"Parker!" she said, voice now turning high "how can you say something like that!"_

_"Come on Liz!" he shot back "you know it's the truth! People like you and me; we're treated like shit at this school! And no one is doing a goddamn thing about it! They're just simply throwing us to the dogs! If this is the only way that we're going to get justice, I say so be it"._

_"Careful what you say there Westby" came Calvin Ridge's sneering voice "don't wanna end up like Baker did"._

_"Don't you have some freshman you need be harassing trailer trash?" Parker said._

_"I don't think I made myself clear" he said, taking a step towards him "better watch what you say-"_

_"Or else what?" Parker said, now getting up from his seat "you gonna shoot me or something? How do we know you're not the one who decided to put a couple of bullets into our star student?"_

_"maybe I should put a few bullets in you too" he said, the two of them now toe to toe._

_"that a threat?" Parker said mockingly "I'd love to see the day when some dumb street rat like yourself will take me down"._

_"oh we'll see" he replied "so if I were you, better watch out for yourself". With that said, he turned around and stalked off._

_"you shouldn't antagonize him Parker" Liz said "loose cannon like him-"._

_"what ever" he said, sitting back down "like he's really gonna do anything"._

_"I just want you to be careful" she said "with all thats going on..."_

_"Liz, come on" Parker said "like I'm really gonna end up like that ass bag Baker, especially by the hands of trash like Ridge"._

* * *

"Bit ironic" Liz said as she finished up "a few days after he said that to Parker, Calvin becomes the shooters next victim".

"And did you ever tell the police this?" Scotty asked.

"Yeah, I told them" she replied "but here's something I didn't tell them, course back then I didn't think of it either".

"But?" Lily said.

"This is just a hunch" Liz said "but if I were some one about to go on a mass shooting spree, I'd rather be one of the victims then one of the suspects".

"so you think" Scotty said "that Calvin purposely staged his own attack?"

"perfect way to hide ones identity" Liz said.

"And another to get away with murder" Lily said.


	3. Chapter 3

**Authors note: hey everyone, so sorry for the long wait, I've just been so busy, with stuff and juggling two other fanfics, that it took a bit longer then I expected. Hopefully this will tide you all over, cause I dunno when I might be able to continue another chapter, hopefully soon, when my schedule has cleared up.**

* * *

"Seems Calvin's been busy developing quite a rap sheet for himself after high school" Stillman said as he gazed at Ridge's sheet "two counts of grand theft auto, three for driving under the influence, both alcohol and drug related, three years of total jail time for assorted robberies, and to top it all, five different incidents of illegal gun holding, including one when he was in school".

"Sounds like a real winner" Scotty said, "They didn't happen to say what kind of gun he was carrying at the time of Parker's death?"

"Nope" he replied "but lets just say it wasn't the first time he had a 9mm on him, or a shotgun or a magnum for that matter".

"Liking him already" he replied.

"So I did that check on Adam" Jeffries said, walking over to the two men "apparently, he's done pretty well for himself. Man now runs his own advertisement firm up in Northeast Philly, one of the largest in the city today. Married for five years to his wife Mary Baker, two kids between them, nice fancy house, no criminal record, pretty much what you expect from the star high schooler".

"Once you gloss over a few facts" Stillman remarked "what about on Calvin, we got some sort of address for him?"

"According to this" Scotty said, "his last official residence was about three years ago for an apartment up north. Since then he hasn't settled down any where else, so I say he's either hustling on the streets or bunking with a friend"

"Okay then" Stillman replied "Scotty, why don't you and Lily go and have a visit with Baker. Jeffries, see if you can track down Ridge for us".

Just then, there was a knock on the office door. The three men turned their heads to see a Vera at the door, a woman standing next to him, her short cropped hair dyed a shockingly bright purple wearing a black and white striped shirt, and Technicolor pants, wrist adorned with many neon colored wristbands.

"Sorry guys" he remarked, "This here is Lydia Townsend". Her whole image flashed back to when she was sixteen years old, when her hair was still brown and long, face lit up with her enthusiastic smile, and clothes a more simpler style of pastels. After a brief moment, she flashed back to her current self.

"She was a friend of Parker's" he continued "heard about us re-opening the case, wanted to come down and see if she could help".

"Oh" Stillman said, a bit surprised by this announcement "all right then. Uh, Scotty, if you don't mind".

"Not at all" he said.

"And speaking of which" Vera said "Scotty, there's someone here who wants to talk to you as well".

"Wow, place is really rocking today" he commented as he headed out the door.

"So, I'll leave the two of you to it" Nick said before closing the door, leaving Stillman alone with the woman named Lydia.

"Ms. Townsend, if you would have a seat" Stillman said.

"Certainly" she replied in a bright voice "I'm sorry if this is so sudden. I wasn't sure if I should have called first but I just had to come here as soon as I heard about it. Wait, it is true right?"

"About us opening Parker's case, that's right" he replied "do you happen to know something that might help us?"

"As a matter of fact, I do" she said "as I'm sure that you've figured out by now, those shooting victims, not exactly pure saints right?"

"You can say that" he replied, "Why, you think they might have deserved it?"

"In a sense" she said, "I wouldn't have gone so far as to go and shoot them but, obviously someone did".

"So now that we got that settled" Stillman said " hows about you tell me the true reason you came down here for".

She sighed, "Well, it isn't something I'm exactly proud off. Shoot, if I had said it the first time, maybe his case would have been solved then and there".

"That's pretty big" he commented, "What was it?"

"It happened…bout a week or so before Parker got killed" Lydia began "It's a day that still haunts me after all this time".

* * *

_("Even Flow" by Pearl Jam)_

_"So ticket sales have been great," Lydia said, Parker leaning against a nearby locker as she got out her stuff "way better then last year"._

_"Well no duh" he said "after last years epic disaster, plays could only get better"._

_"So true" she said, closing her locker, books in hand as they headed off for class. Off in the distance, she spotted the policemen stationed near one of the school's exits, both of them shaking down a student._

_"Swear, those cops give me the creeps," she said._

_"Why? There only here to help" Parker said._

_"But it ain't like they've been doing a good job at it" she commented "three more attacks after Ridge and their nowhere near finding the guy who's doing it. Mark me words, if they don't find the guy doing all this, there will be killings next, mark my words"._

_"Oh, I wouldn't think he go that far" he said._

_"Why not?" she asked._

_"Cause usually with people like this, they always follow a specific formula" he began "their modem opus, so to speak. From what I've heard, this guy never intended to kill any of them, just enough to make them nervous, sort of teach them a lesson"._

_"Is this some sort of psychology crap?" Lydia asked._

_"Maybe" he replied in a devilish tone._

_She rolled her eyes "you and that freaky deaky pysch stuff"._

_"What's the point of learning something if your not going to use it?" he asked._

_She was about to argue, but stopped "touché, my friend"._

_"And plus, ain't like they'll do much good" said Parker._

_"Why's that?" she asked._

_"Haven't you notice that all the shootings occurred after the school hour?" he said "and those guys get off as soon as the final bell rings. I think the only reason their here is to make the principle not look bad, give people a sense of security"._

_"Well that's bull," said Lydia._

_"I know" he replied, "oh wait, do you mind if we stop at my locker for a bit? Just need to pick up a few things"._

_She looked over at the clock "yeah, we got time"._

_Stopping at his locker, he quickly dialed in the combination and opened, Lydia noticing something drop to the floor._

_"Hey, what's that?" she asked._

_"What?" he asked._

_"That" she pointed to the ground "it just fell to the floor"._

_Parker knelt down, picking up a folded piece of paper, gazing at it curiously "odd" he said "oh well, first time for everything right"._

_He unfolded the paper, eyes quickly scanning the words that Lydia couldn't see. Looking at his face, she saw his brow furrow, eyes going wide, teeth biting on his bottom lip._

_"Everything all right?" she asked after a moment._

_"Yeah" he said quickly, folding the letter up "just fine"._

_"What it say?" she asked._

_"Nothing" he said quickly "look Lydia, I really have to go, I'll talk to you later. Promise me that you won't say anything about this"._

_"Well what's so bad?" she asked, "what did it say?"_

_"Please Lydia" he said in a frantic voice "just promise me you won't say anything"._

_"I won't, I promise!" she replied, growing more anxious by the minute._

_"Thanks" he said, giving her a hug "I'll talk to you later all right?" and he let her go, quickly running down the hallway without a second glance back._

_"Hey, wait!" she called as he began to head down the hall "what did the letter say? Parker? Parker!"_

* * *

"I kept my promise," said Lydia "just like he said. Lot of good that did, huh?"

"Do you ever find out what was written on the letter?" Stillman asked.

"Nope" she said, "never saw of it again. I assume whatever was on it was something bad. Who knows, it might have been the shooter, leaving one of his messages behind. What was it he always said…I Balance? Is that it?"

"Yeah, that's it" he replied.

"Beat myself up over it everyday" she said "maybe if I would have told someone sooner, he may still be alive today".

* * *

Outside, Lily was just returning from storage and spotted Scotty talking to someone, a woman, and by the looks of things it was getting pretty heated.

"Hey" she said to Vera "who Scotty talking to?"

"No idea" he replied "just showed up at the department, asks to speak to him, nothing else".

Looking back, things only seemed to get worse "you think its some old flame?" he asked.

"I don't think so," she said, just as he began to walk away from the woman "and its over".

Walking over, Scotty began to rub his forehead "hey, anything wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing" he said quickly "boss wants us to check on Baker, figure we better go".

"Alright" she replied, slightly put off by the rapid sentence "you sure-"

"Its nothing, all right?" he said harshly, before walking off on her.

She turned to Vera "don't look at me," he said.

Feeling it was best to let the subject go, Lily and Scotty drove in silence up to Adam's business, catching him just as he was about to go into a meeting.

"Can we make this quick" said a teenage Adam, cocky attitude on his face, still dressed in his football jacket, the whole image vanishing to an older Adam, now in a business suit but cocky attitude still in tack "I am about to close a very important deal and don't want to jeopardize it for taking to long".

"Well we wouldn't want that to happen," said Lily, barely hiding the sarcasm "we just want to ask a few question on Parker Westby. Name ring a bell?"

"He was the kid in my grade who got killed by the Fairmount shooter" he said "so what?"

"Witnesses have told us he had real a grudge against you," said Scotty "wanted to get revenge after what you did to Liz".

"That was settled a long time ago," said Adam "I never touched her. She was just some desperate bitch looking for attention. If that's all you are here for-"

"Oh trust me, that's not it," said Lily.

"Then what else is there?" he asked, "I was a victim just like he was".

"That still doesn't rule you out as a suspect" said Scotty "for all we know, the Fairmount shooter may have had nothing to do with his death. And even if that rape charge wasn't true, it still gives Parker a pretty good reason to try and get even with you".

"I was nowhere near the kid when he got murdered" he said "I had football practice till five and then I hung out with my friends for the rest of the day. So unless you have some real proof besides these wild accusations, I really must get going".

"Fine then," said Lily "but don't think this is the last you'll hear from us".

Giving them a curt nod, he walked of down the hall, not even giving them a second glance.

"That went well," said Lily.

"Well as to be excepted," replied Scotty "maybe Valens and Kat were able to get something out of Ridge".

She nodded, the rest of their way to the elevator in silence. With the doors closing and them being on the top floor, she decided to go for it.

"So are you not going to talk about what happened at the station?" she asked.

"I already told you, its nothing to worry about" he replied.

"Doesn't sound like nothing" she said.

"What are the odds of you letting this go?" Scotty asked.

"Pretty slim" she replied.

He gave a laugh, hand rubbing his forehead for a moment "alright, if you must know" he said, "her name is Mariah. She's my youngest sister".

"Didn't know you had a sister," she said, having only met one of Scotty's siblings "what did she want?"

"Help, all she ever asks for whenever she tries to contact me" he replied, voice growing bitter.

"What did she want?" Lily asked.

"Needed some money" said Scotty "pay of her rent. Or so she told me".

"What other reason could there be?" she asked.

"Dunno" he said "but it can't be good".

"And you don't think you should" Lily said.

He was silent for a moment "no" he said coldly, the elevator doors opening as they reached the bottom floor, Lily getting the hint that the conversation was now over.

* * *

"You sure this is the right place?" Kat asked as they walked down the derelict apartment hall.

"Not really" Jeffries replied "but this was the last place that Ridge was said to be staying at. We just have to hope he hasn't moved on to better places".

"What and leave this fine establishment" she commented, noticing a cockroach scramble past her.

Arriving at the door number 34, Jeffries gave two loud knocks on the door, a small scuffle heard from behind.

"Who is it?" came a woman's voice.

"Philly PD" he replied.

The door opened a crack "what do you want?" asked the same woman.

"We need to speak to Calvin," said Jeffries "he wouldn't happen to be home, would he?"

She narrowed her eyes, shutting the door and unlocking the latch. He heard her yell out his name, the two of them only having to wait a few minutes before the door opened again, a man now standing at the entry way, dressed in a grimy wife beater and tattered pants, blonde hair unkempt and five o'clock shadow across his hard face.

"Calvin Ridge?" Jeffries asked.

"Yeah" he replied, flashing back to his younger self, still locking as washed up as before "what's up?" another flash and he was his current self.

"Here to speak to you about Parker Westby's murder" said Kat.

"I thought that thing was closed years ago," he said.

"It was, now its been reopened" she said.

"We hear you've got a real thing for guns" said Jeffries "magnums, handguns, any you can name and you've owned".

"My dad was a hunter" he said "grew up with it my whole life. So what? And last I remembered, Westby was stabbed".

"Ironically by a hunting knife" replied Kat.

"After all, using a gun would be far to suspicious" said Jeffries "considering your history and the fact a serial shooter was on the loose".

"What exactly are you implying?" Calvin asked.

"Maybe your little attack wasn't all that coincidental" said Kat "after all, better to be a victim then a suspect".

"And then Parker uncovered your little secret" Jeffries said "so you decided to take him out before he blabbed your secret".

"Whoa, whoa, whoa" said Calvin "that's completely not true! I never killed anyone!"

"Convince us otherwise," replied Jeffries.

"I did not kill Westby" said Calvin "and I didn't shoot any neither. In fact, maybe you should concentrate more on him then me".

"Why?" asked Kat.

"He knew something" he replied "something that he didn't want anyone to find out about".

* * *

_("Rusty Cage" by Soundgarden)_

_Calvin was slumped against the wall, busy puffing his last smoke before he had to go to class. From beyond the corner, he could hear two people arguing. Curiosity getting the best of him, he leaned forward to get a better look. It was Westby and that blonde chick he hung out with so much._

_"How could you?!" she said "how could go along with this plan?"_

_"In case you haven't noticed," he replied, "it seems to be working pretty nicely"._

_"But through fear?" she said, "your no better then he is! What happens if they catch you?"_

_"They won't, I've made sure of it," he said._

_"What if your wrong?" she asked, "Jesus Christ Clark, this is exactly how things happen!"_

_"But it won't" he said simply "I've thought it through"._

_"No you haven't!" she yelled, throwing her hands up in frustration._

_"Well then what Liz?" he asked "what would you do then? From what I remember, your plan ended up with you getting squat and Baker walking free"._

_"Don't you dare" she said in a dangerous voice "this has nothing to do with him. What you are doing is dangerous! And the police, do you know what the police will do? You could go to jail! Or worse!"_

_"Don't be so overdramatic Liz" he said._

_"I am not, I'm being realistic," she said "stop this, now, while there's still time"._

_"There's no going back" he replied grimly._

_Liz was silent "fine" she spat "if you won't tell, I will"._

_"You wouldn't," he said._

_"I would"._

_Both of them were silent, glaring at each other, before Liz gave a huff and began to walk off, leaving Parker standing there._

* * *

"he knew something" Calvin finished "and with that argument, it just confirmed my suspicions".

"When did this occur?" Kat asked.

"A few days before he got killer" he said.

Jeffries phone began to ring, quickly digging into his pockets and pulling out his phone, talking for just a few seconds before hanging up.

"That was the boss" he said "needs us to come down to the department immediately, says its urgent".

"Am I done here?" Calvin asked.

Kat nodded curtly, she and Jeffries taking off before he could close the door.

"Well, what's the urgency" she asked.

"Wouldn't say".

* * *

Lily hurried up to the top floor, the elevator doors barely opening before she could squeeze out and rush into the department, Scotty right behind her. She saw everyone gathered at one of the desks, Mrs. Westby sitting nearby.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"Mrs. Westby" said Stillman.

She nodded, picking up a black bag from under her chair and setting it on the table "I was looking through Parker's room" she began, voice cracking slightly "I found this hidden under a floor panel. I swear, I had no idea".

Stillman opened the bag, picking it up and dumping the contents onto the desk, one of which resounded with a heavy thud. There were only two items. One was an old black ski mask…and the other was a 9mm handgun.

"Never did catch the guy who did it" Scotty said.

"Now we know why," said Lily "he was already dead".


	4. Chapter 4

"So let me see if I got this straight" said Vera, closely following Miller and Lily "this ordinary kid wakes up one morning, decides to get himself a gun and go on an all out shooting spree on his fellow students, without any clear motive and practically nothing to gain in the process?"

"Sure does seem to add up to that" Miller commented.

"Not really" said Lily, "from what I've seen, most of these shooting victims did not have a squeaky clean record as we were lead on to believe. From a serial rapist, a thug, a bully".

"Like some screwed up version of the Breakfast Club," commented Vera "but I still don't understand why the kid would do it".

"You should really start paying more attention to your cases," said Miller "no one was listening. All these unpopular kids at the school were being treated like dirt and not any of the teachers or principles were doing a thing about it, which is not as uncommon as many would think. This kind of stuff happens in high schools all over the country, where faculty members tend to gravitate to the more 'normal' students and hear out their problems then go to someone who didn't exactly fit the norm of the high school student".

"Where did ya come up with that idea?" he asked.

"That's what you get for two years of psych in college" said Kat.

Vera shrugged "maybe".

"Either way we look at it, still adds up to Parker becoming the Fairmount Shooter," said Lily "and making our five shooting victims the prime suspects".

The three of them walked over to the desk where Jeffries, Scotty, and Stillman were already waiting, a large white board posted behind them with all the pictures of the victims and suspects.

"Alright, now that we're all here" said Stillman "run through what you all were able to find out. Scotty, Jeffries, you first".

"The night of Parker's murder, there were several events taking place at the school" began Jeffries "one was a charity bake sale for the sophomore class, the other two being a wrestling meet and an art club meeting".

"Which would explain why Parker might have been staying after so late" said Scotty, referring to the photo film found in the backpack "and it also puts Baker and his friend Matt Klein at the scene, both of them being on the varsity wresting team that year".

"And what about you three?" Stillman asked.

"We were able to dig up some of the schools old security tapes," said Kat "after a bit of searching, one of the tapes was able to pick up Calvin entering the school at around four o'clock".

"As for Elise, she was reported to have been helping out at the bake sale that day" said Vera "and from an interview with her mom, she didn't arrive home until some time after twelve".

"What about our fifth victim Terrell?" asked Stillman.

"We can cross him of," said Lily "hospital reports show Terrell wasn't released until the twenty sixth, almost four days after Parker's death. We also picked up the autopsy report for Parker's death, the M.E. placing his death at sometime around eight to ten".

"With all our suspects still at the school during those times" Jeffries said.

Stillman nodded "okay, here's what we're gonna do. We got one dead teen and four victims with the perfect motive to kill. I want all of them brought into the precinct as soon as possible, each one in a interrogation room assigned with a different cop, find out everything you can on what they were doing that night, who was where, with whom, anything that can be of any importance. Leave no stone unturned. Lily will take Elise, Scotty with Baker, Miller with Klein, and Jeffries with Ridge".

"What about me?" asked Vera.

"Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about you," said Stillman "you can be in charge with Liz. If Ridge is right, she might know something about Parker's death. Everyone's got an assignment, now lets get it done".

It only took an hour at best to round all of them up.

* * *

"Look, I had nothing to do with Parker's death" said Matt, in his teen self, with his short curly brown hair, thick arms, and pudgy body, flashing back to his current self, hair starting to recede, arms still thick, but body looking a lot smaller then in his teen years.

"Well you saying that isn't much good" said Kat.

"And I'll tell you this, it was that Fairmount Shooter" he said "everyone knows it was him, so why don't you try investigating into that?"

"Parker was the Fairmount Shooter," replied Kat.

Matt's mouth dropped "w-wait? N-no, no way, it can't be".

"We found the gun the shooter used under the floorboards in his home" said Kat "and the ski mask as well".

"You're kidding?" he said.

"No, I'm not. And right now, its not looking to good for you Matt".

"Why is that?" asked Matt.

"Cause now that makes you a suspect" said Kat.

"W-wait! Hold on! I didn't know he was the shooter until just a few seconds ago!" said Matt.

"And I tell you again Matt, you saying that doesn't do much good" said Kat.

Matt crossed his arms, letting out a frustrated sigh "then I don't know what else I can do to convince ya".

* * *

"I got some good news for ya Calvin" said Jeffries "it seems you were telling us the truth about the Fairmount Shooter".

"I told ya I didn't kill nobody," he said.

"Except for one thing" he replied "you forgot to mention the fact about it being Parker".

"Huh?" he asked dumbfounded.

"Parker Westby turned out to be the shooter" he said "and with that new revelation, that puts you in prime for the perfect motive".

"I didn't know," he said, stressing the words "I had no idea that he was the shooter".

"Really?" said Jeffries "cause unless you can prove it to me otherwise, your looking like a real contender. So how about you start by telling me what you were doing at the school that night"

"I went there to do some errands" he replied.

"Oh, that sounds nice. What kind of errands?" Jeffries asked.

"Just stuff" he said "went there to sell some weed I had on me, got myself a first timer who was willing to pay me triple the amount. Figured it was easy money".

"And that kept ya till ten at night?"

"I had to stay for my detention service," said Calvin "help the janitor do some stuff till he closed the school. I was with him the whole time, you can ask him".

"Then how is it then, if you were there for so long, you failed to find Parker's body?" he asked "after all, if you were going to lock up the school, you had to have gone to the main entrance, where Parker was found".

"We must have already locked that part of the school up" he replied "other then that, can't think of anything else".

* * *

"This had better be good detective," said Adam "having to drag my ass all the way down here".

"Oh believe me, it is" said Scotty " after all, it would kill me inside to have you come down here for nothing".

"Funny. Now how about explaining me being here?" he asked, "I already gave you my alibi-".

"Now that's where I got to stop you," said Scotty "cause the previous alibi you gave us no longer checks out".

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"You said you were at football practice till five," said Scotty.

"Yeah, so?"

"That's the thing," said Scotty, taking a seat next to him "cause last time I checked, the football season ended in November".

"I meant to say wresting," he said quickly.

"That's still a pretty big flub to make there," said Scotty "only way I could think of saying something like that is if I had something to hide".

"I made a mistake," said Baker "big deal".

"It is a pretty big deal" said Scotty "cause that shotty alibi puts a big target on your back".

"I did not kill him, all right!" Adam said loudly "what purpose would I gain for killing him?"

"Revenge, that's why!" said Scotty, "you wanted to get Parker back after what he did to you and you figured maybe cutting his throat was a justifiable way".

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"You found out Parker was the Fairmount shooter" said Scotty, leaning in towards Adam "must have made you real angry, getting on up like that by some outcast".

"I never knew that freak was the shooter" said Adam "and I certainly didn't kill him. I don't wanna talk any more till I have my lawyer" he crossed his arms and held his head high, an obvious indication he wasn't going to say anything else.

* * *

"I can't believe it," said Elise, "after all these years, it was Parker who did it all along".

"So you just found out about this" said Lily "sure you're not off by a couple years?"

"I will admit I was at the school that day, and I did stay after for a bit" she said "but I was nowhere near Parker when he died. And even if I was, I wouldn't want to kill him".

"Is that so?" asked Lily.

"I know its going to sound weird" said Elise, flashing back to her teen years, auburn hair long and scraggily, heavy eye makeup, and a sour look on her face "but getting shot was the best thing that ever happened to me" turning back into her current self, hair now short and prim, makeup virtually absent, and the sour look no longer their.

"Interesting, why don't you explain it to me?" she asked.

"I was a bully back then, and I know it" she said "that day when he shot me, I really did see my life flash before my eyes. And let me say, it was definitely something not worth remembering. My whole life and all I had done was make peoples lives miserable? Who wants to say they did nothing but beat on freshmen? When I got out of the hospital, I decided to change my whole life around. Clichéd, huh? First day back, I walked up to every kid I had ever ragged on and apologized, got more active in school, helped out after hours, joined with the drama club. I did everything I could to separate myself from my old life".

"So if you found out it was Parker, you wouldn't want to hurt him?" Lily asked.

"I give him a fricking medal," she said.

* * *

_("Losing My Religion" by R.E.M)_

_"This are not looking good" said Lydia, Parker sitting across from her at the lunch table, the main cafeteria still abuzz with students in the after hours._

_"What is it now?" he asked._

_"The schools cutting our budget back, again" she said, running her hand through her hair "that's three years now in a row. Anymore and we won't be able to put on a spring play"._

_"Let me guess, the moneys going to the football team" Parker said._

_"Who else?" said Lydia "its like no one cares for the fine arts anymore. Football games last only a few hours but great plays live forever! I'm sure Shakespeare is rolling in his grave right now"._

_Elise walked up to them, arm still in a sling, trying not to look hostile "hey Lydia, Parker" she said kindly._

_Lydia looked at her funny "uh, hi Elise. How are you doing? Feeling better?"_

_"Yeah" she replied "they just wanted to keep me in this thing so my muscles can relax. And I'm so hopped up on Vicoden I can barely feel the pain"._

_"Can we help you with something?" asked Parker, voice guarded._

_"I just wanted to come up and say I was sorry," she said "for all of the things I've done to you guys"._

_Now Lydia had a confused look on her face "okay" she said._

_"I know it's a bit of a shocker" she said "big tough Elise apologizing for her bullying ways. But I really am sorry for all those years, if I could I would take them all back"._

_"So why apologize now?" asked Parker._

_"You know that old saying? Life flashing before our eyes?" she said, "well, I had that experience as well and lets just say I wasn't to pleased with what I saw". There was a brief silence._

_Lydia smiled "well, thank you Elise, that was very kind"._

_Elise smiled back "and that's not the only reason I came by. I was thinking about joining the drama club, I hear you guys are still looking for roles for the spring play"._

_This seemed to brighten Lydia "yeah, of course we are. In fact, we're going to have a meeting tomorrow after school, so just drop on by and you'll get a chance to scoop out the roles. Believe me, there are a lot of open parts"._

_"I'll be there," she said, starting to walk away "so I'll see you guys around, okay?"_

_"Sure thing, see ya" said Lydia, waving her bye._

_As Elise started to walk away, she heard Parker say, "Well that was a pleasant surprise"._

_"I know, don't you love it when those happen?"_

* * *

"And before you know it, Parker was dead" said Elise "kind of ironic. I apologize for my crimes and still someone gets hurt".

"While that's a very touching story" said Lily "it still doesn't explain where you were that entire time afterwards, or did the bake sale really run to midnight?"

"I did stay after late that night" said Elise "after the bake sale, I went out to get some food, got back to my house at around nine, not midnight".

"So then your mom made the whole thing up?" asked Lily

"It wouldn't be the first time my mom has mistaken the time in her drunken stupor" she replied.

* * *

Lily walked into the viewing room, where all the detectives, except for Nick, had gathered and Stillman leaning against the wall.

"What did you get?" he asked.

"Elise claims she had no animosity towards Parker," said Lily "left the school after the bake sale ended, claims to have not seen Parker".

"So basically the same thing we all got," said Scotty "we're running in circles. And where is Nick?"

"He's still trying to get Liz on the phone, but she isn't answering our calls" said Stillman.

"So until then, we're just spinning our wheels," said Kat.

"Not yet" he replied "while we're waiting for Liz, go over everything our four suspects have said, try to poke some holes into their stories, find anything we can shine a light on one of them

At that moment, Vera walked into the room "finally got through to Liz, she's coming down to the precinct as we speak" he said.

"Least that some good news" Jeffries commented.

"And we're going to make the most of it" said Stillman, detaching himself from the wall "Nick, you and I will wait for Liz, as for the rest of ya, you know what your assignment is, so get on it".

* * *

Kat walked over to where Lily was, busy scrolling through some more of the schools surveillance videos.

"Got anything?" she asked.

"Not yet" said Lily "I've probably re-viewed all these tapes at least three times already and every time it's the same thing" she pressed the fast forward button, the tapes time speeding up for a few moments before she pressed play again.

"And right about here is when we see Calvin locking up one of school's entrances" a few seconds on the tape and sure enough, an image of Calvin came around the corner, janitor outfit now on, rolling a large bucket of water across the floor.

"Wait a second," said Kat, leaning forward towards the TV "go back a little bit".

Lily rewound, Calvin's image disappearing behind the bend again "stop" Kat said, the image freezing on an empty hallway.

"I don't see anything," said Lily.

"Look" she said, pointing to the screen "the reflection in the glass" she was indicated to the main office's glass walls, blurry reflections evident on the clear surface "Calvin's talking to someone. He failed to mention that when Jeffries talked to him".

Lily squinted her eyes "its to blurry to make out any of the faces".

"We better run this down to the tech squad" said Kat "maybe they can help us clean up the image".

Taking a quick stroll down the hallway and an elevator ride down to the basement, they arrived at the technical lab where one of the workers, an Asian guy named Corey, was able to assist them.

"Well I can say, you sure know how to find them" he commented "security tapes are crappy as it is, but combine that with the school system and the tight budget their on and you got the absolute worse tapes imaginable".

"So what? You can't clear it up?" asked Kat.

"I didn't say I can't, its just going to be difficult" he continued "I can amplify the image and clean it up, but unless I get a good lighting angle, all we're going to see is a very dark blob".

Sliding the tape into the VCR, the stopped image appeared on the screen. Corey did a couple of clicks on his mouse, causing a few boxes to pop up "alright, let me see if I can brighten things up" the image got a lighter, the dark shadows becoming more crisp.

"Now lets zoom in" he did another click and he zoomed in on the panel of glass "and now lets make it clearer" one more mouse click and a few taps on the keyboard and the image became more defined, though the faces still remained dark.

"Lets fast forward a bit" he said, slowly letting the tape images go by, the figures making jerking motions as it went forth, though they still remained in the dark.

"Got it," said Corey, stopping the video, one of the faces now visible.

Both Kat and Lily leaned in for a closer look "is that…" said Lily "is that Adam?"

"Yet another thing Calvin forgot to mention," remarked Kat.

* * *

Jeffries and Scotty walked into the interrogation room, Calvin lifting his head up at the sound of there approach.

"Hey, not to be rude or anything" he said, "but how much longer is this going to take?"

"Well I was going to tell you that we no longer needed you," said Jeffries.

"Alright, cool" he said.

"But that was before I was handed this" he placed a photo down on the table, the same blown up image Lily and Kat were looking at "now I know security footage is pretty cruddy but even I can tell that's Adam there".

Calvin bit his lower lip "I didn't…I didn't think it was important".

"You thought that talking with one of Parker's victims hours before he was killed wasn't important?" said Scotty in a hard tone.

"It was a stupid mistake" he replied.

"That seems to be a habit of yours, making stupid mistakes" said Jeffries "gun possession, drunk driving, robbery, wouldn't surprise me if one of those were murder".

"I already told you, I didn't kill him!" said Calvin.

"Then I suggest you start telling the truth" said Scotty "otherwise, we find out you've been holding out anymore information, things are not going to get pretty for you".

"Teenage hoodlum murders fellow classmate for revenge" said Jeffries "about as cut and dry as they get". Calvin was silent for a few minutes before he finally talked.

"Here's the truth. I didn't kill Parker" his image flashed back to seventeen years ago "but I did have my suspicions he was somehow involved with the shootings" reverting back to his current self.

"You remember what I told you, back at my apartment?" he continued.

"How you overheard the fight between Parker and Lydia," said Jeffries.

Calvin nodded "after that happened, I wanted to get answers. That day I went to confront him…"

* * *

_("Touch Me I'm Sick" by Mudhoney"_

"Yeah mom, I'm going to be staying after a bit to finish my photo assignment" said Parker on the pay phone "Mrs. Ramin said I could stay as long as could, just as long as I locked up afterwards"

"Alright, but not to late" said his mom "in case your hungry, I'll leave leftovers in the fridge for you".

"Thanks mom" he said "I'll talk to you when I get back" and then he hung up the phone.

"Aw, is mommy worried about her special boy?" said Calvin as he came towards him.

"Calvin" said Parker "nice to see you. I swear, the color grey really goes well with your skin".

"You should be a regular comedian" he replied "and right now, your treading on my clean floor".

"Oh, I'm so sorry" he said "If I had known that, I would have gone to some of the other payphones".

"Cute" said Calvin.

"Well, I wouldn't want you to slack on your janitorial duties, so I let you have at it" said Parker, beginning to walk away.

"Not before I talk to you first" said Calvin.

"What could you possibly have to talk to me about that's of any importance?" asked Parker.

"Well I think I have something to say that will catch your interest," said Calvin "something that has to do with that little spat you and your girlfriend had a few days ago".

Parker looked at him funny "what does that have anything to do with you".

"It has everything to do with me," he said, stepping closer to Parker "I'm not as dumb as you think I am. I know that you have something to do with the Fairmount Shooter".

"Oh really" said Parker in a sarcastic voice.

"Yeah, really" said Calvin.

"You sure that Vicodin hasn't been messing with your brain" he said.

"Better watch it, Westby" he shot back, getting right into Parker's face "your lucky I don't report you to the police".

Parker looked him straight in the eye "and what proof do you have? Other then an eyewitness account of a fight between two friends".

He said nothing, Parker smiling in the process "I thought so" he then turned around and began to walk down the hall.

"And anyway" he called back "who would believe trash like you?"

"Don't mock me Westby!" yelled Calvin "you think your so smart, but your not! One day you're going to get what's coming to you!" Parker didn't even acknowledge that he heard any of his rant, Calvin huffing in frustration.

"You know Ridge, you should really watch that temper" came a voice from behind. Turning around, he saw Adam Baker and his friend Matt, both of them now heading towards him.

"What the hell do you two want" spat Calvin.

"Relax Ridge, I'm not here to hassle ya" said Adam "I couldn't help but to overhear your conversation with Westby".

"Yeah? So what" said Calvin.

"Don't forget, we all were victims of the shooter" said Adam "and believe me, not a day goes by that I don't want revenge. Now if ya got something, why not spill it?"

"Why should I say anything to you?" asked Calvin.

"Because" said Adam "unlike you, I can make sure things get done". Calvin didn't say anything, his anger starting to subside and anxiety now started to crawl in his stomach.

"So how about starting at the beginning," said Adam.

* * *

"I told Adam about the fight" said Calvin "after that, he and Matt bolted".

"Where to?" Scotty asked.

"After what I said, Adam decided to pay Liz another visit" he said "and the next morning I arrive at school to find police men all around the entrance. I knew that those three had something to do with it".

Jeffries got up, Scotty following him to the opposite side of the room "if what Calvin is saying is true, then Liz must have known about Parker's secret".

"And if there was ever a person who could get that information out of her" said Scotty "nothing better then her own rapist".


	5. Chapter 5

Liz was in the interrogation room now, seated in the metal chair, head hung slightly, Stillman sitting directly across from her while Vera hovered nearby.

"Liz" began Stillman "we need you to tell us about the night of Parker's murder".

"I already told you, I wasn't at the school when it happened" she said, "I went home as soon as the final bell rang".

"We know that's true," he said "but we also know that you're keeping something from us".

"I don't understand," she said.

"You knew that Parker was the Fairmount shooter," said Nick "you being his friend, you didn't turn him in. But the thing about secrets Liz is this, they do eventually come out". She said nothing, hands kneading on the table

"Calvin overheard you guys arguing," said Stillman "and then Adam found out as well".

"Must have pissed him off to know end to find he had been done over by someone like Parker" said Vera "but as great a guy Adam is, smarts isn't exactly his forte".

"You are the only one who knew about Parker's secret" said Stillman "the only one who could have told Adam-"

"I never said anything to that bastard!" she snapped, "I would never, ever do something like that to Parker!"

"Under normal circumstances, no" said Vera "but this was different. Here was the guy who had raped you, coming to you for information, probably demanding that you tell him what you knew".

"I have seen a lot of rape victims Liz," said Stillman "and I know that most of them could never come to face their rapist without a steady conscious" Liz went quite again, head lowering.

"We know it was not your fault" continued Stillman "and we know you would never sell Parker out like that. But unless you tell us what happened that night, we cannot connect Adam or Matt to the murder, and everything we have been saying would all just be circumstantial". She was still quiet.

"Please Liz" he said.

A tear rolled down her cheek, her hand reaching up to clear it away "the day I went back to the school…after the rape" she began "I saw him in the hallway, laughing with his friends. I ran to the bathroom and threw up, had my mom take me home".

She paused, taking a deep breath "and when the judge had the case dismissed, he hi-fived his lawyer and winked at me when he exited the courtroom. After that I kept as far away from him as I could, went into counseling, tried to put the whole thing behind me. I was good for a while…until that night"

She lifted her head up, looking directly into Stillman's eyes "he came to my house that night, demanding answers. And when I wouldn't tell him" she flashed back to her sixteen year old self "it was like the night of the rape all over again".

* * *

_Liz scribbled down the math solution onto her paper, the doorbell's ring breaking her away from her homework trance. Placing her pencil down, she got up and began to trek down the hall._

_"Coming!" she called, the ringing becoming even more frantic, as if a bird was chirping frantically, until it eventually stopped and turned to pounding._

_"I'm coming!" she yelled, quickening her pace, wondering who the hell could be making such a racket._

_She grabbed the doorknob and twisted it "what on earth is your problem man-" she stopped her sentence, mind suddenly going numb, stomach doing a sickening flip, vision wavering as she saw Adam Baker standing at her door._

_He smiled "hello Liz" he said._

_Liz gripped the door and tried to shut it as fast as she could but Adam was faster. Barreling the door open, he grabbed her by the neck, fingers digging deep into her skin, pushing her back until she was slammed against the wall. She desperately dug and kicked at him, breathing becoming tighter, but he overpowered her, pressing his entire body against her._

_He took a deep whiff of her neck "you smell good" he said, "Just like I remember"._

_She freed one of her hands, trying to feebly bang at his head but he grabbed it as she came down, pinning it to the wall "now come on" he said "no need to be rude"._

_Liz spat at him, glob of spit landing on his cheek, which followed with him sucker punching her to the cheek, stars twinkling in front of her, hand thrusting her head back so she was looking at him right in the face._

_"That was just mean" he said in harsh tone "do that again and I'll break your pretty little neck". He leaned forward, pressing his face against hers._

_"Listen bitch" he said, "All I need is one thing from you. A simple answer from a question I have. Tell me truthfully and I'll walk out that door and you will never see me again, understand?"_

_Liz's eyes started to water "understand!" he yelled, Liz giving a small whimper of fear before she nodded her head._

_"Good" he said, a devious smile on his face "now listen carefully. I know that your friend Parker has something to do with the Fairmount shooter. You being his best friend in all, I would think he would have told you something about him"._

_She felt her heart beat raise to a fever pitch, sweat running down her forehead "tell me who it is" he continued._

_She shook her head, Adam slamming her head against the wall "tell me who it is!" he yelled, Liz shaking her head rapidly._

_"No? No!" he yelled, throwing her to the ground. She clutched her neck, breathing in deeply, but then she felt his hand in her hair, tugging so hard she felt the hair being pulled out from its roots._

_"Tell me who it is, right fucking now!" he yelled, Liz now starting to bawl her eyes out, body paralyzed with fear._

_"You stupid whore!" he yelled, hand grabbing her shirt, yanking it right off her "I'll teach you!"_

_"No!" she yelled, clawing at his hands, only to receive another swift punch to the face._

_"Fucking whore!" he yelled "god damn slut!"_

_She felt him yank down her skirt, his pants starting to unbuckle, everything from that night starting to flood back into her._

_Terror stricken, she began to yell "its Parker! Its Parker!"_

_Adam stopped, breathing heavily "what did you say?"_

_Liz took a deep breath "its P-Parker, h-he's the shooter, its him"._

_Adam didn't move for a moment, face changing from shock to anger "that little bastard" he said._

_He got off of Liz, pulling his unbuckled pants up and heading for the door, but not before he turned around to face her, still lying on the floor, sobbing uncontrollably._

_"You tell anyone, anyone about this" he said "I will kill you. You hear me? I will kill you". Grabbing the door, he slammed it behind him, Liz curling up in a ball, tears streaming down her face, to grief stricken to move._

_"I-I'm sorry," she said in between sobs "I-I'm so s-sorry"._

* * *

Another tear began to trickle down Liz's cheek "there were days, you know" she said "days when I would tell myself it was time I finally told the truth. To finally walk down to the station and tell the police what happened, close Parker's case once for all. But every time I did, I could never walk through the front doors. I would stand there for hours, never moving from my spot, until finally when the streetlights would come on I would head back home".

She looked up "its my fault Parker is dead" she said "and I know whatever I say won't change the outcome…but at least now, I can make things right".

Stillman leaned over to Vera "tell Lily and Scotty" Nick nodded, getting up from his seat and walking out the door.

"I Balance" said Liz.

"I'm sorry?" asked Stillman.

"That was the message Parker left at the shootings, I balance," she said "it was meant to represent his zodiac sign, Libra. In mythology, the Greek goddess of justice Themis was the one who carried the scales of justice. When a person died, his soul was weighed on the scales, where a golden feather was dropped on the opposing side. If a person had a good soul, then it would rise and the person would go to heaven. If it was a bad soul, then the feather would rise and the person would be sent to Hades to face eternal damnation. Parker used the shootings as a way for the person to be judged, to see if they were truly a good person deep down inside".

"And for Adam, that wasn't the case" said Stillman.

She nodded in agreement "no…it wasn't".

* * *

Walking back into the room, Lily saw Adam and Matt already seated, Scotty close by, ready for her. Adam had his arms crossed, a very agitated look on his face, while Matt shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

"Are we about done here?" asked Adam "I need to be getting home soon".

"Yep, we're about done" said Lily "all that's left now is to fill in the missing piece of the puzzle" she threw down the folder she was holding, contents open so everyone could see.

"What is this?" asked Adam.

"Well that is a picture of you Adam" she said "taken from a security camera at your school. It shows you talking to Calvin, something you failed to mention to us when interviewed you".

"Not important" he said.

"Oh but it is Adam" said Scotty "cause Calvin says that told you information about the Fairmount shooter, something that could point you to his identity".

"Which is understandable" said Lily "after all, this was the guy who shot you down, for no apparent reason what so ever. If that would have happened to me, I would have looked for revenge myself".

"Calvin pointed you in the right direction" said Scotty "Parker knew something about the shooter. Hell, he might have even known his identity. But you were smart, you knew that no matter what you did, Parker wasn't going to tell you a damn thing".

"So you went to the only other person who might have known" said Lily, "you went to Liz Hartford, Parker's best friend, the girl you raped, the perfect candidate for you to get information".

"That is a lie," he snapped "whatever that bitch told you is a lie. I never raped her and I didn't go see her that night. Me and Matt went straight home after practice".

"Its true" said Matt.

"And as for this photo, it hardly seems plausible" he said "I can barely make out that blob you call me".

"So let me get this straight," said Lily "both Calvin and Liz were lying to us, possible to save there own skins and everything we have been saying is completely blown out of proportion and our whole case is flawed".

"Exactly" said Adam.

"Well I hate to burst your bubble Adam," said Lily, staring him right in the face "but Calvin and Liz weren't lying and we aren't blowing this out of proportion. You see, we have all the evidence in the world to prove you killed Parker that night".

"What evidence?" he said "the testimony of some lowlife and a crappy, blown up surveillance tape?"

"Well, not exactly" she said, taking out a sheet from under the photo "see I was just handed this just a few minutes ago. It's from the crime lab. Now I'm not sure if either of you two took forensics in high school but a fingerprint, if left undisturbed, can last for years on a surface. See we found the murder weapon, a hunting knife to be exact, stuffed at the bottom of Parker's discarded backpack and hidden in one of the schools boiler room. When we got it, we had it sent down for identification and this is the results".

"To put it simple" said Scotty "your fingerprints were found on that knife Adam". Adam's mouth gapped slightly, arms slacking a bit.

"And it only gets better" said Lily "we also contacted your father Adam, showed him a picture of the knife, which he claimed look exactly like a similar knife he used to own. One he thought he had lost back in 91".

"Could have been any one of his knives," he said.

"But wait, there's more" said Scotty "there was one thing that did bug us. Again, this coming from Calvin, he was in charge of locking up the school before he left. So even if someone could have gotten in, it would be a bit of a problem".

"Then it hit us" said Lily "the principal of the school, he must have a set of keys on him and…well, I think you can figure the rest out".

"This…this…" tried Adam, fumbling over his words.

"I bet it made you angry" said Lily "that someone like you, the big bad football star, with money in his pocket and a dad who could let him get away with anything, the big man on campus, taken down by the high school outcast".

"Your wrong" said Adam, "you are wrong!"

"Not we're not Adam!" said Lily, "you took the knife and your fathers keys and you went back to that school to kill Parker, to make him pay for what he did to you! And let me tell you what," for this she stared right into his face "your dad cannot help you this time". Adam sat their dumbfounded, face going white, eyes bugging out, looking as if he might have a fit.

"And don't think your getting out of this either Matt" said Scotty.

"W-what?" he stuttered.

"You were with Adam that night" said Scotty "we know because your fingerprints were found on the knife as well". Matt swallowed hard.

"So here's the deal boys," said Lily "you two are going to jail, one way or another. The only thing left to solve is who gets charged with murder and who gets accomplice to murder".

Silence descended on the room. Both Adam and Matt in their teenage years, both with their football jerseys on, faces sullen and withdrawn.

"We went to Adam's house," said Matt, back in his present self "after we had gone to Liz's"

"What are you doing?!" snapped Adam.

"He told me to keep the car running" he continued "and when he got back, he told me to drive to the school".

"Shut up Matt" said Adam.

"We got in through one of the side entrances" said Matt.

"Shut up Matt!" said Adam.

"you shut up" said Matt "its no use at this point".

"I swear god Matt, if you-" said Adam

"what are you going to do Adam, huh?" he asked "tell me, what are you going to do?" Adam clenched his jaw, eyes burning with hate.

"keep going Matt" said Lily.

He turned to her "he was just leaving the building when he spotted him" said Matt "I thought…I thought we were just going to, you know, rough him up a bit. But then…it turned ugly…"

* * *

_Parker shut the art room door as he left, checking the door to see if it had locked. The school was dark and quite now, most everyone having gone home by now. Walking down the hall and into the main part of the building, he headed down the front entrance steps and extended his hand for the door, only to find out it was locked._

_He huffed in frustration "you got to be shitting me" he said, turning back around "hey Calvin! I'm still in here!" he walked back up the steps, looking up and down the dark entrance hall, dropping his backpack by his feet._

_"Calvin!" he yelled "Calvin!" Just then, something stirred from the shadows and Adam and Matt materialized from the gloom._

_"Oh, its you" said Parker in a disgusted voice, directing it to Adam specifically "what the hell are you two still doing here?"_

_"I can ask you the same question," said Adam "not trying to shoot another student, are ya?"_

_Parker gave him a quizzical look "yeah that's exactly what I'm doing" he said "think you might have hit your head to hard while doing your little floor exercises"._

_"Always one for the jokes, huh?" said Adam "well listen here you little freak, I'm not joking around. I know you're the Fairmount shooter"._

_Parker laughed "oh really?"_

_"really" said Adam "came right from little Lizzie's mouth"._

_"You keep her out of this" said Parker._

_"Too late Westby" he said, "you already did when you fired that first bullet"._

_Parker gave another small laugh "I should have just killed ya"._

_"So you admit it then" said Adam._

_"I just did," he said, "what are you going to do about it? Tell daddy? Call the police on me? You going to turn me in?"_

_"That's exactly what I'm going to do," said Adam, reaching behind to his back pocket "but not before I get my revenge" he then pulled out one of his father's hunting knives, its polished blade glinting in the moonlight._

_Matt's face became pale "A-Adam" he said, "What are you doing?"_

_"Its all right Matt" he said, taking a step forward "everything's all right"._

_Parker raised his right eyebrow "what are you going to do Adam?" he said "going to stab me with the knife?"_

_"No" said Adam "I'm not going to just stab you with the knife. I'm going to do something a lot worse then that. I'm going to…what's the word I'm looking for? Oh yeah, defile you with this knife"._

_"Adam please" said Matt "lets not do this. We should just call the cops and let them deal with Westby!"_

_"Be quite Matt" he said._

_"Come on man, he's not worth it" he said._

_"Oh for gods sake Matt, grow some fucking balls already" said Adam "He shot you as well. Don't tell me you wouldn't do it either? Don't tell me you want revenge as well?"_

_"Not like this" he said "not like this"._

_"Your such a fucking weakling" Adam spat._

_"No" said Parker "you're the weakling"._

_"What did you say?" asked Adam, turning back to him._

_"You think that giving me a few knife wounds is going to make you more of a man," said Parker "but it won't". Adam's eyes darkened._

_"You can stab me, beat me, turn me in to the police and have me rot in prison" he continued "but at least I'll have the comfort of knowing I'm not some low life ass bag like you. Who gets off on shoving his dick into defenseless girls half his size and acting like some whiny little bitch when someone finally has the sense to stand up to you. You don't deserve a second chance. Your just a piece of shit"._

_Adam let out a cry of fury, one arm reaching out to grab Parker by the shoulder, while the other he used to thrust the knife right into his chest. Over and over he stabbed him in the chest, Adam bellowing like a mad man, Parker's blood seeping from his body, while Matt watched in horror nearby._

_Stabbing Parker for a fifth time, Adam looked him straight in the eyes, his face chalk white "what do you have to say now?" he said in a ragged voice._

_Parker's lips twitched into a weak smile "see ya in hell" he croaked. That's when Adam pulled the knife out for the last time and slashed Parker's throat._

_Eyes rolling back, he wavered slightly before falling backwards, tumbling down the entrance steps all the way to the bottom. Adam looked down to see Parker's dead body splayed like a mannequin, body lit up by the moonlight._

_Still breathing heavily, he turned to Matt, standing stock still, face in complete shock._

_"Here" Adam said, thrusting the knife to Matt "get rid of this"._

_"W-what?" he asked._

_"Get rid of it Matt!" yelled Adam "if the police find that, we are done for! Now do as I say and meet me out front in ten minutes". Matt looked at him horrified, the blood stained knife gingerly held in his hands._

_"Ten minutes" said Adam "or I'm leaving without you" and he walked off, leaving Matt standing there._

_Trying to pull himself together, he finally noticed Parker's discarded backpack. Reaching down, he pulled open the top and stuffed the knife at the very bottom, zipping it up and slinging it over his back before taking off down the hall._

_Running a short distance, he quickly opened the door to the boiler room, running all the way to the very back where he took the backpack and hid it behind one of the boilers._

_Pausing for a moment, he uttered a silent prayer "please forgive me" and then he was gone._

* * *

_("One" by U2)_

Adam stood in front of a blank wall, the flash of the camera going off as his mug shot was taken. When the first flash went off, he had turned into his teenage self, his handsome face angry and sullen, another flash turning him back to his present self. When Matt's turn came, his expression was that of sadness and remorse. As Adam passed him, he too flashed back, where he was now that pudgy kid. Turning away from his former friend, he walked to the wall and turned to face the camera, the flash going off and his current self now stood, a tear falling from the corner of his eye.

Calvin stood outside the police department, absently kicking at the pavement as he waited for the bus, when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning around, he saw it was Elise. She stared at him with a concerned look, his one of suspicion. As a person walked by, they changed back into their former selves, when they were the high school bullies, the ones that all the kids feared or the adults saw as low lives who would never go anywhere in life, but this time their faces didn't show any anger. Elise's sour face now kindly and Calvin's tough guy exterior no longer present. Flashing back to their present selves, she indicated for him to come with her. Without hesitating, he followed her down the street.

Liz stood over Parker's grave, a bushel of flowers held in her hands. Kneeling down she gently placed the bouquet across the small patch of earth, one hand gently resting on the curve of the tombstone. She was young again now, face at ease and a smile on her lips, no longer torn apart by that horrible night. Raising herself up she changed back to her present self, hand digging in her pocket so she could pull out her cell phone.

As Lydia directed the men on the stage, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Pulling it out, she saw it was a text from Liz. Flipping it open she saw the message was very short, consisting of only three words. _It's finally over_. Now sixteen again, hair a normal color and still as optimistic as ever, she closed the phone and held it to her heart, a large smile appearing on her face. Turning back to the stage, she flashed back to her current self and continued directing her play.

Back in the file room, Jeffries carried Parker's case file in his arms while behind him Vera held the Fairmount shooter case, both of the boxes with the word closed written on their lids in black marker. Stopping at one of the racks, they found a couple of empty slots and slid the two boxes into place.

Outside in the main room, Scotty was finishing up some last paperwork when he spotted Mariah. She saw him too, waving for him to come talk to her, a pleading look etched on her face. He looked down for a moment, clearly debating on whether or not he should go and talk to her. Lifting his head back up, he gave a heavy sigh and began to walk to her.

At Parker's house, Lily was handing his backpack back to his mom, who took the tattered thing in her arms, a look of serenity on her face. Giving a silent thanks to the detective, she gently closed the door.

As Lily turned around, she saw Parker, his arms gently resting over the chain link fence. He was smiling at her, a small, confident smile, one that told her she had done her job and that his was finally over. Raising himself up, he gave her a small wink before turning towards the street, slowly vanishing from sight.


End file.
